09/19/2025
Unlocking Creativity
Through Side Projects
Room 3
11:00 – 11:45 am
Use side projects strategically to provide creative impetus in your main projects.
Description:
Dr Jörg Sydow examines how constraints in organisations can not only hinder creative processes, but also promote them. Using case studies from classical music in two of the world's leading orchestras, he shows the role played by aesthetic, material and organisational constraints. Side projects loosen up these structures and open up creative freedom. The lecture provides valuable insights into the handling of limited resources and shows how innovative ideas emerge in highly regulated environments.
Key Takeaways:
Do you want to promote creativity in your organisation even though resources and framework conditions are severely limited? Dr Jörg Sydow shows how constraints can be used as a driver for innovation and what role side projects play in this. You will learn in a practical way how creative processes can unfold through the targeted ‘stretching’ of constraints and how you can strategically utilise side projects to feed creative impulses back into your main projects. Gain new perspectives on creative work in structured and regulated environments.
![[Translate to English:] bild-joerg-sydow](/fileadmin/user_upload/Speaker/bild-joerg-sydow-400x400.jpg)
Dr Jörg Sydow (Germany)
Dr Jörg Sydow is Professor of Management and Head of the Chair of Corporate Cooperation at the Freie Universität Berlin. He was co-founder and co-editor of journals such as Managementforschung and Industrielle Beziehungen. He is currently Senior Editor of Organization Studies and the Project Management Journal. In 2018, Dr Jörg Sydow received the Global Research Award from the International Project Management Association (IPMA).
